IJEC

DOI 10.1007/s13158-016-0161-5

An Action Research Study in an Icelandic Preschool:

Developing Consensus About Values and Values
Education

Ingibjorg Sigurdardottir1 • Johanna Einarsdottir1

 Springer Science+Business Media Dordrecht 2016

Abstract Values education is embedded in the curricula of all the Nordic countries.
However, values education remains a neglected area for research and practice in
early childhood education and care. This article reports on the aspects of an action
research project conducted in a preschool in Iceland, across a period of 18 months.
The study focused on the nature of the values that the preschool teachers deemed as
important to communicate to children and how they saw their own role in values
education. Habermas’ theory of communicative action is the theoretical framework
of the study. Data for this study were gathered in collaboration with the seven
preschool teachers who participated in the study. The preschool teachers chose three
values to focus on during the action research project: care, respect, and discipline.
The data consisted of audio recordings from meetings, interviews, and journal
writings. Thematic analysis was used to find themes and patterns in the data. Five
themes were identified concerning the preschool teachers’ role in values education:
being a good role model, use of language, discussion, guidance, and direction. The
findings showed that the participating preschool teachers emphasized children’s
participation and development of social skills. While these data were collected in
just one Icelandic preschool, it appeared that the preschool teachers strongly valued
mutual understanding and meaningful interactions with the children.

Keywords Values education
Values
Preschool
Action research
Case study

Communicative action

& Ingibjorg Sigurdardottir

[email protected]
Johanna Einarsdottir
[email protected]
1
School of Education, University of Iceland, Stakkahlı́ð, 105 Reykjavı́k, Iceland

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Résumé L’éducation aux valeurs est incluse dans les programmes de tous les pays
nordiques. Cependant, l’éducation aux valeurs reste un domaine négligé dans la
recherche et la pratique en éducation et garde des jeunes enfants. Cet article pré-
sente des aspects d’un projet de recherche action réalisé dans un centre préscolaire
en Islande, pendant une période de 18 mois. L’étude se concentre sur la nature des
valeurs que les éducateurs préscolaires estiment importantes à communiquer aux
enfants et comment ils voient leur propre rôle en éducation aux valeurs. La théorie
de l’action communicative d’Habermas est le cadre théorique de cette étude. Les
données ont été collectées en collaboration avec les sept éducateurs qui ont participé
à l’étude. Les éducateurs préscolaires ont choisi trois valeurs sur lesquelles ils
souhaitaient mettre l’accent pendant le projet de recherche action : le soin, le respect
et la discipline. Les données se composent d’enregistrements audio de réunions,
d’entretiens et de notes de journal. L’analyse thématique a été utilisée pour trouver
les thèmes et les modèles dans les données. Cinq thèmes ont été identifiés en ce qui
concerne le rôle des éducateurs préscolaires en éducation aux valeurs : être un bon
exemple, l’utilisation du langage, la discussion, le conseil et le contrôle. Les
résultats montrent que les éducateurs préscolaires insistent sur la participation des
enfants et sur le développement de leurs aptitudes sociales. Alors que ces données
proviennent d’un seul centre préscolaire islandais, il apparaı̂t que les éducateurs
préscolaires valorisent fortement la compréhension mutuelle et les interactions
significatives avec les enfants.

Resumen La educación en valores se incorpora en los currı́culos escolares de todos

los paı́ses nórdicos. Sin embargo, la educación en valores sigue siendo un área des-
cuidada para la investigación y la práctica en la educación y la atención de la primera
infancia. En este artı́culo se informa sobre los aspectos de un proyecto de investi-
gación-acción llevado a cabo en una escuela preescolar en Islandia, a través de un
perı́odo de 18 meses. El estudio se centró en la naturaleza de los valores que los
maestros de preescolar consideraron importantes para fomentar en los niños y en cómo
veı́an su propio rol en la educación en valores. La teorı́a de la acción comunicativa de
Habermas es el marco teórico del estudio. Los datos para este estudio fueron colec-
cionados en colaboración con los siete maestros de preescolar que participaron en el
estudio. Los maestros de preescolar eligieron tres valores en los que centrar su atención
en el transcurso del proyecto de investigación-acción: el cuidado, el respeto y la
disciplina. Los datos consistı́an en grabaciones de audio de las reuniones, entrevistas y
escrituras de diarios. Se aplicó el análisis temático para encontrar temas y pautas en los
datos. Se identificaron cinco temas en relación con el rol de los maestros de preescolar
en la educación valores: ser un buen modelo de rol a seguir, el uso del lenguaje, la
discusión, la instrucción y el control. Los resultados mostraron que los maestros de
preescolar hicieron hincapié en la participación y el desarrollo de las habilidades
sociales de los niños. Mientras se recogieron estos datos en una sola escuela preescolar
islandesa, parecı́a que los maestros de preescolar valoraron fuertemente la com-
prensión mutua y las interacciones significativas con los niños.

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Introduction

The Icelandic philosopher Skúlason (2009) pointed out that a nation needs to think
critically about what values should be dominant and desirable in the society, when
he reflected on the economic crisis in Iceland 2008. He argued that the fault of the
crisis laid in the Icelandic educational system, which in his opinion has put more
emphasis on teaching, or technical issues, than on education, or critical thinking
skills. Since the preschool constitutes the first level of education in the Icelandic
school system (Icelandic preschool act no. 90/2008), preschool education is
included in Skúlason’s concerns.
The study reported in this article focuses on values and values education in an
Icelandic early childhood education setting. Values are understood as ‘‘principles
and fundamental convictions which act as general guides to behaviour’’ and as
‘‘standards by which particular actions are judged to be good or desirable’’
(Halstead and Taylor 2000, p. 169). Values education, on the other hand, refers to
educational practices through which children are assumed to learn values. The aim
of values education was to promote children’s understanding and knowledge of
values so they can act according to these particular values as members of the society
to which they belong (Halstead and Taylor 2000; Thornberg 2008).
Recent research illustrates that values are embedded in the core curricula and
legislation regarding early childhood education and care (ECEC) in all of the Nordic
countries (Einarsdottir et al. 2015). Nevertheless, research in relation to values
education among early childhood populations is largely neglected. This study is a
contribution to the gap of values education in ECEC. The aim was to shed light on
the values prioritized in one Icelandic preschool, including what values the
preschool teachers deem important to communicate to children, and also to reveal
how the preschool teachers see their own roles in values education.

Theoretical Approach

Habermas’ theory of communicative action is the theoretical framework of the

study. The foundational insight of Habermas’ theory is, for this study, his dual view
of society. That is, that society can be analyzed from two different perspectives: the
system and the lifeworld. From the lifeworld perspective, the society is an everyday
social world in which individuals share a meaningful context that helps individuals
understand and interpret their environment. The preschool settings therefore
represent parts of the lifeworld of preschoolers in which values are experienced,
expressed, and negotiated. From the system perspective, on the other hand,
individuals are seen as a natural force with no impact in the society, but it is fulfilled
by the economy and the legal system. Educational laws, national curriculum
guidelines, and other regulations therefore represent the system of preschools
(Habermas 1981/1987; Heath 2011; Ingram 2010; Kemmis 2011).
Habermas talk about two kinds of social actions: communicative and strategic
action. The intention behind these actions differs markedly. A communicative action
is oriented toward mutual understanding and consists of meaningful interactions

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characterized by a subject–subject relationship. A strategic action is goal-oriented,

focused on individual purposive goals which lead to a subject–object relationship
between the communicating parties (Habermas 1981/1987; Heath 2011; Ingram
2010; Kemmis 2011).
When education is viewed from the lifeworld perspective, it orients toward
individuals’ understanding and meaning-making. By contrast, from the system
perspective, education is directed toward success and the achievement of goals in
the overall society (Fleming and Murphy 2010). Habermas talked about coloniza-
tion of the lifeworld, a circumstance in which the system takes over the lifeworld,
and noted how power and money, for instance, can place demands on schooling and
eventually undermine the conditions necessary for education. He warns that the
result of such colonization could well be the ‘‘instrumentalization’’ (Heath 2011,
p. 86) of communication in schools, which itself will lead to unreasonable demands
for results and spoon-feeding teaching methods, at the expense of discussions and
active learning (Habermas 1981/1987; Heath 2011; Kemmis 2011).

Values and Values Education

Halstead (1996) has pointed out that values are central to education, both in theory
and in practical activities. Values education can occur at any time; nevertheless, as
Keskin (2012) notes, the early childhood period is crucial since it is the stage at
which education can most effectively influence children’s development (European
Commission/EACEA/Eurydice/-Eurostat 2014; Sylva et al. 2004), including values
education. The preschool is part of young children’s lifeworld, in Habermas’
understanding, where they socialize with other children. It is a community where
children should learn to live and practice democracy (Einarsdottir et al. 2015).
Halstead (1996) claims that school itself reflects the values of the society to
which it belongs. However, the existence of different groups in the society with
divergent values can sometimes lead to conflict regarding which values should be
communicated to children, as Brady (2011) and Gary (2010) have noted. Others
have also pointed out how values education can affect education in a positive way,
like Toomey (2010), who assumes that systematic and conscious values education
leads to increased child participation, a more positive learning experience, and
increased cooperation. Some studies from primary schools support this and show
that values education is powerful in helping children improve their communication
skills (Aðalbjarnardóttir 2007). Other research findings give, on the other hand,
reason to question the benefit of values education and claim that primary school
children seem to have a problem understanding and interpreting some values
(Keskin 2012). Lovat (2011) argues that ‘‘values education is increasingly seen as
an effective way in which a more holistic approach to learning can be achieved,
resulting, among other things, in enhanced academic diligence’’ (p. 150).

Prioritized Values in Preschools

Findings from a recent study on values embedded in Nordic ECEC curricula show
that values related to social skills, rather than academic skills, are emphasized in

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Nordic policy documents. Democracy, caring, and competence are embedded as

value fields in the educational policies of all the Nordic countries, but discipline is,
on the other hand, not emphasized in Nordic ECEC curricula (Einarsdottir et al.
2015). Other studies have shown that disciplinary values are communicated in
Nordic preschool settings (Emilson and Johansson 2009; Fugelsnes et al. 2013),
which might indicate a difference between system perspectives and lifeworld
perspectives in the Nordic preschools.
Emilson and Johansson (2009) identified three different value fields in
interactions between preschool teachers and children in Swedish preschools. These
were caring, democratic, and disciplinary value fields. The authors point out that
the fields of care and discipline contain values that obligate children, for instance, to
not hurt others, to understand, and to show compassion. The field of democracy
involves values that offer opportunities for participation, influence, and negotiation.
Disciplinary values involve obedience, independence, and achievements, and
obligate the children to behave in certain ways and teachers to aim at specific goals.
Emilson and Johansson (2009) found that Swedish preschool teachers chose to focus
on values that reflected the kind of persons they wanted the children to become.
According to their findings, the ‘‘desirable Swedish child’’ (p. 72) is caring,
democratic, and disciplined. In Norwegian preschools, seven different values were
prioritized: the individual’s rights, community, participation, care, independence,
competence, and self-enhancement (Fugelsnes et al. 2013).

Preschool Teachers’ Role in Values Education

The focus of this study is not only on what values are prioritized in the preschool,
but also on the preschool teacher’s role in values education. Existing studies show
that the teacher’s role is a crucial factor since children learn values from the
teacher’s response to their actions and from the setting’s atmosphere, which itself
reflects the teacher’s values (Aðalbjarnardóttir 2007; Brady 2011; Gary 2010).
Few studies on values education in early childhood educational settings and on
preschool teachers’ roles have been conducted, but there have been some studies in
primary schools (Mergler and Spooner-Lane 2012; Thornberg 2008; Thornberg and
Oğuz 2013) and on teachers’ education in relation to values education (Lovat et al.
2011; Oğuz 2012). Findings from these studies show that primary school teachers
seem to focus mostly on instructing their students in proper behavior when it comes
to values education and being a good role model is seen as the main method for
teachers to communicate values for children. Excellent questioning and listening
skills have also been mentioned as important features of values education, as well as
the teacher’s ability to recognize and respond to children’s diversity (Mergler and
Spooner-Lane 2012).
To sum up, existing knowledge illustrates an underpinning focus on values
education in Icelandic ECEC documents, representing the system according to
Habermas’ theory of communicative action (Habermas 1981/1987; Heath 2011).
Research has shown that values education can lead to increased child participation
and that early childhood is an important period for values education.

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Research Questions

There is a gap in knowledge on values education, especially in early childhood

education and, in Iceland, no research in values education in preschools has been
identified in the literature. New knowledge in the field can promote the future
development of educational systems, curricula, and teacher education. This study
aims to contribute to this knowledge, and in accordance with the aim of the study,
the following research questions guided the work:

• What values do the preschool teachers deem important to communicate in

preschool children and why?
• How do the preschool teachers understand their own roles as values educators?

Methods

Data for this study were gathered in collaboration with preschool teachers who
participated in an action research study during a period of one and a half years, where
they focused on their own values and professional development in relation to values
education (Gordon 2008; McNiff 2010). The methodology was chosen since its main
advantages are the learning and the professional development that happens through the
collaboration between the participants (Kemmis et al. 2014). Action research is seen as
an effective way to gain better understanding and improve practice, and furthermore, to
increase the empowerment of the teachers (Koshy 2008). The limitation of the study is
the fact that it only builds on data from single preschool in Iceland and therefore cannot
be generalized (Bogdan and Biklen 2007). The first author of the paper worked in close
collaboration with the participants throughout the whole process. The preschool
teachers agreed on values that they wanted to focus on during the action research. In the
beginning, an emphasis was placed on common understanding of concepts, and this
common understanding was seen as crucial for continuing collaboration about values
education. The views and understanding of the participants will be presented in this
article, since the emphasis in the project was on their professional development rather
than on teaching them the meaning of certain values nor give them predetermined
definitions. Hence, we did not use definitions developed by other scholars but gave
room for the participants to develop their own definitions of the three values.

Participants

The participants were seven preschool teachers in one Icelandic preschool, given the
pseudonym Hill Park in the study. Hill Park was chosen as participating school after
recommendation from the City of Reykjavı́k preschool authorities. The criteria
behind the selection were based on high rate of preschool teachers employed in the
preschool; staff stability; the preschool was not participating in other projects
concurrent with this one; and finally, the preschool teachers were interested in
participating in the action research. Details about the participants are displayed in

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Table 1 Study participant details

Name Education Position Years of Years
level employment working at
Hill Park

Anna B. Ed. Preschool director 19‘ 10

Sara B. Ed. Pedagogical leader and 20 5‘
assistant director
Helga B. Ed. Preschool teacher 8 8
Elin M. Ed. Preschool teacher 25 7
Karen B. Ed. Pedagogical leader 14 13
Iris B. Ed. Preschool teacher 15 5
Lisa B. Ed. Special teacher and 13 12
preschool teacher

Table 1. There were six females and one male, but to prevent traceability, all seven
individuals have been given female pseudonyms. All are educated with a Bachelor
of Education as preschool teachers, in addition to one who has a Masters degree in
early childhood education. They have experience as preschool teachers from 8 and
up to 25 years.

Data

Data were gathered through three methods throughout the action research study.
Firstly, the participants kept journals throughout the process, in which they reflected
on their professional development and how they dealt with values education. No
instructions were given to the participants about how often they should write in the
journals. Secondly, audio recordings from all meetings were used as data. There
were two types of meetings held during the research period for the two units in the
preschool. There were meetings for the staff in each unit which were held twice each
term for each group over three terms. This was a total of 12 meetings overall. In these
meetings, the preschool teachers discussed how they were working on values
education collaboratively in the children’s group and how they intended to continue
this work. These meetings were important to harmonize the practice in each unit.
There were reflection meetings held with the entire group. There were two meetings
in each term. This was a total of six meetings across three terms, and each lasted
approximately 2 h. The topic of the reflection meetings was chosen in collaboration
with the participants. The preschool teachers reflected on their experiences using logs
from their own journals to reflect on values and values education. They also watched
video clips that were taken in the setting and discussed and analyzed their own
actions in the video (MacNaughton and Hughes 2009; McNiff 2010).
Thirdly, the preschool teachers were interviewed and asked about their
understanding of values in general, and the values they chose to focus on were
discussed. The preschool director was interviewed individually, but other partic-
ipants were interviewed in two focus groups (Kvale 2009), twice during the period,
in the beginning and at the end. The interviews were audio recorded and transcribed.

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Data Analysis

All the data were transcribed, and quotations from the participants were translated
from Icelandic to English. Thematic analysis was used to analyze the data and to
find themes and patterns. The analysis started during the data gathering. The first
step was to organize the data to simplify further work. At that stage, all data were
classified chronologically, starting with the data from the beginning of the process.
Journals were analyzed separately, one at a time, since the dates were not always
written in each log. The next step was to code the data according to the three values
that the preschool teachers chose to focus on early in the process as well as their
views on role of the preschool teachers in values education. The software program
Atlas.ti7 (2003) was used for coding the data, except for the journals which were
coded manually, since they were handwritten and due to the time-consuming nature
of typing them. The third step in the analysis was to examine the data for patterns
and identify themes within each code. The focus was on how the preschool teachers
understood the three values, why they found these values important to communicate
to the children and the roles of the preschool teachers in values education. The final
step was then to display the findings according to the themes (Braun and Clarke
2006; MacNaughton and Hughes 2009).

Ethical Issues

The study was reported to The Data Protection Authority of Iceland, and the City of
Reykjavı́k preschool authorities provided permission for the study. All participants
signed informed consent forms, where they acknowledged that they knew what was
involved in participating and that they had the right to opt out anytime during the process.
The confidentiality and anonymity of the participants was also emphasized (EECERA
2015). Parents and other staff members at Hill Park were informed about the study.

Findings

The time the preschool teachers spent choosing the values on which to focus
indicated that they found it complicated to define the concept of values. In the
beginning of the action research, they were unsure about their own understanding of
the concept. After discussions and reflections during common meetings for some
weeks, the preschool teachers chose three different values to focus on during the
action research period: care, respect, and discipline. These three values are
therefore seen as prioritized in Hill Park’s practice, and the findings that will be
presented here show the participating preschool teachers’ view and understanding of
values education.

Prioritized Values—Care, Respect, and Discipline

The preschool teachers agreed that care, respect, and discipline were important
values to communicate to young children. They chose these three values because

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they found them suitable for the children at Hill Park at the time and found these
three values covering what they wanted to teach children in the preschool. The
preschool teachers saw care, respect, and discipline as values that make the children
socially stronger and therefore they wanted the children to adopt these values and
learn to use them as guidelines in life. They found it important for the children to
learn good communication and self-control, especially because they are and will
always be a part of some group both in preschool and in the community. Elin
emphasized this in a focus group interview, saying: ‘‘I think that social competence,
to be able to have good communications with others, I think that is most important’’
(May 2013).
According to Sara, the preschool teachers seemed to realize that their choice did
not necessarily stand for universal perspectives on what values are important in
ECEC. She said during a meeting in the beginning of the project:
For example we have, as a group of teachers, chosen certain values that we
want to focus on, but maybe someone else won’t find these to be the right
values to focus on….this is something that we believe is right here and now
(Meeting, May 2013).
The preschool teachers saw the three values as closely related, as Sara said at a
meeting in October 2013: ‘‘…they [the three values] are very much intertwined,’’
and Elin continued, saying: ‘‘…we cannot, for example, work with discipline unless
there also is respect involved.’’
Table 2 summarizes how the preschool teachers at Hill Park understood the
values of care, respect, and discipline, after reflecting on these concepts for the first
3 months of the process. Most of the teachers had been focusing on respect and care
before in their practice but wanted to explore these two value fields further. They
found discipline, however, an exciting challenge, something new and important to
focus on in the practice and communicate to the children.
The preschool teachers emphasized that the value of care represented a main
theme in the preschool practice. When the preschool teachers at one of the units

Table 2 Preschool teachers’ definitions of the three values

Care Respect Discipline

Definitions of values Well-being for others Good communications Rules

(What is involved) Warm Talk nicely Framework
Comfort Listen Foundation
Helpfulness Respond Help/tell what to do
Consideration How to treat others Self-control/self-discipline
Friendship Consideration Sticking to what started
See others’ points of view Finishing what started
Understand difference Positive discipline
Fairness Flexible rules
Courtesy Negative discipline
Rigid rules

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discussed how they understood the value of care, Lisa said: ‘‘…you do care if
something happens to the other person… it is about comforting and also having
tolerance for others.’’
The preschool teachers also saw respect as one of the most important things for
children to learn in preschools. During a focus group interview, Elin said: ‘‘…they
[the children] learn that you cannot treat other people just the way you want… they
learn communications that are characterized by respect’’ (October 2013). To clarify
how she understood communications that are characterized of respect, Elin continued:
It involves, for example, that you talk nicely to people, that you use nice words
when you talk and that you listen to the person you are talking to… that you
listen, hear, and respond to what the other person says.
The preschool teachers found discipline the most complicated value to work with
out of these three and believed it might be because people often see discipline as
negative and are reluctant to even talk about discipline, especially in relation to
early childhood education. Despite this, the preschool teachers at Hill Park found it
important to focus on discipline. In a focus group interview, Sara explained why:
‘‘Discipline was definitely chosen because we found it necessary to clarify it… both
here in the preschool and outside…in the society’’ (October 2013).
Two main themes were evident when the preschool teachers reflected on how
they understood discipline: rules and self-control. In a focus group interview, Iris
mentioned these two themes when focusing on discipline, stating: ‘‘for me we have
two principles concerning discipline; they are rules, you need to be able to follow
rules, and the other is that you need to be able to control yourself’’ (October 2013).
Thus, the preschool teachers saw rules as a necessary foundation for discipline, a
framework that helps people to control themselves by reminding them to stop and
think before they act.
The preschool teachers made a clear distinction between positive and negative
discipline in their understanding of the concept, and clearly promoted positive
discipline practices. The difference between positive and negative discipline, they
argued, lies in certain flexibility regarding rules (see Table 2). This view is evident
in Sara’s journal when she wrote about discipline:
Discipline is often in general discourse negative and related to power,
violence, or abuse of some kind. Positive discipline is therefore something that
I have more dedicated myself to use and I believe it is about teaching children
and helping them in their communication—implementing social skills and
competence.

How to Communicate Care, Respect, and Discipline?

Throughout the action research period, the preschool teachers consistently reflected
on their own role as values educators and on how they could communicate values to
the children. Analysis of the data revealed five themes in relation to preschool
teachers’ understanding of their roles in values education.

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Being a Good Role Model

The preschool teachers understood their own role as values educators particularly as
being good role models. Lisa said in a focus group interview: ‘‘I think that being a
good role model is a good way to teach these issues [the values]’’ (May 2013).

Use the Right Words

The preschool teachers also agreed that it would be important to use words for the
values that the children could understand. They believed that they could easily use
the words care and respect in their discourse with the children, but found it more
complicated to use the word discipline. The teachers came up with concepts to use
that they found more suitable in their discourse with the children. For example, they
decided to focus on the concept of friendship to communicate care to the children by
discussing what it means to be friends, what friends do, and so on. They also
decided to encourage the children to say nice things to each other, like Iris reflected
on during a meeting:
We have been connecting care with friendship, for example when there are
conflicts in the group; what kind of friend do you want to be, do you want
someone to do this to you, and so on. We connect the value of care with how
we can be good friends (December 2013).
Likewise, the teachers decided to focus on teaching the children courtesy and
consideration of others, in order to communicate respect to them. For example, they
emphasized that everyone said good morning when they arrived and good-bye when
they left the preschool.
The preschool teachers decided to use the concept self-control instead of
discipline so the children understood the meaning of the concept as the teachers
understood it.

Discussing Values with the Children

The preschool teachers decided to make the emphasis on values visible on the walls,
by putting up posters with the values written on, even though the children could not
read. It was mainly seen as a reminder for the teachers to use the concepts in their
discourse when talking to the children. Elin discussed this in a focus group
interview: ‘‘When the language is there to help us, then somehow we use it [the
concepts] more’’ (May 2013).
As the action research evolved, the preschool teachers further realized the
importance of using the values in discussions with the children in order to
communicate them. In conflicts, they found it useful to help the children see others’
points of view, and by that communicating both values of care and respect. Karen
explained during a discussion at a meeting how she does this when she works with
the children: ‘‘Use it [the values] with them [the children] in discussions when we
are trying to solve conflicts between them, and maybe talk about who is your friend
and what it means to be a good friend’’ (December 2013). Lisa agreed and

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emphasized that discussions were more effective in smaller groups, because then
each child has a better opportunity to participate. The preschool teachers found open
questions as a good strategy when talking to the children, as Karen mentioned
during a focus group interview: ‘‘Use open questions and then they [the children]
may find the solution themselves’’ (May 2013). Elin was convinced that the teachers
were good at talking to the children about values. She said, ‘‘I think we all are good
at involving the values in the discussions with the children’’ (Meeting, March 2014).

Guidance and Closeness

The preschool teachers agreed that their role should be to guide the children in their
communication: ‘‘In all communications we are communicating values by
guiding… when you are helping them [the children] to find other or new ways to
reach their goals,’’ Lisa said during a focus group interview (October 2013). The
teachers found it important to seek the opportunities in daily practice to teach the
values, and they also agreed that being there for the children was very important. In
a focus group interview, Helga explained, ‘‘…we are there on the side and always
ready to come in if needed, but they [the children] are doing everything on their own
assumptions’’ (May 2013).
The preschool teachers also noticed how effective closeness can be when they
watched video clips from a play situation at Hill Park during a meeting. Anna
commented, ‘‘Just look when Iris sat down on the floor, she isn’t saying much, just
approaching them and showing their play interest, how much changes, just by
moving towards the children… it is so great and has a great impact’’ (December
2013).
The preschool teachers found it important to compliment the children on what
they did well, for example, if they showed that they had learned something new.
This was discussed in a focus group interview in the beginning of the action
research study, where Iris said, ‘‘Compliments are very important, they are very
powerful… one can see the good impact they have on the children… it’s like a
vitamin.’’ Sara’s reflections in her journal also show that she found it important to
be close to the children: ‘‘My aim is to build a relationship with each child that is
nourished on respect and care.’’

To Direct—Use Rules

The preschool teachers discussed rules in relation to discipline, and they agreed that
some rules could not be flexible and that the teacher had to direct the children if
these rules were broken. Hence, they found it sometimes important to put a stop to a
behavior and to take control of the situations in order to teach discipline: ‘‘It is about
self-control and sometimes we need to help them [the children] with that,’’ Sara said
during a focus group interview (October 2013). It was clear, however, that the
preschool teachers did not always want to direct the children; it was usually seen as
unnecessary and often rather negative. Elin reflected on her own practice after
watching a video clip from lunchtime, and she was quite shocked by how much she

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was in control of the situation by putting food on the children’s plate instead of
allowing the children to do it themselves:
I just want to say that I find it disturbing to watch how much I am serving them
[the children]. It is not always like this. I am serving them the jam and I am
serving them the sauce (Meeting, December 2013).
The preschool teachers believed that when the children were able to follow their
own interests, they would be more disciplined. They therefore believed in being
flexible with rules and following the children’s interests in order to promote
discipline in the group. At a meeting early in process, Elin said, ‘‘I think that this
route towards discipline is exciting; to have activities that are really interesting for
them; that they find themselves disciplined in what they do’’ (October 2013). The
preschool teachers also believed that teaching discipline could be about providing
the children with more responsibility, for example, by letting them solve problems
themselves and in a peaceful way, so everyone is satisfied.

Discussion

The aim of this study was twofold: firstly, to shed light on the values prioritized by
the preschool teachers in one Icelandic preschool, and secondly, to reveal how the
preschool teachers saw their own roles in values education. The preschool teachers
gained new knowledge and empowerment in their own practice by participating in
the action research (Kemmis et al. 2014; Koshy 2008). Even though the study only
builds on data from one preschool in Iceland and cannot be generalized for other
settings, the findings contribute to the field of values education in ECEC in several
ways. For example, the findings show the complexity of working with values
education. The study also provides important information on the roles of the
preschool teachers as values educators, a field that has not been studied much.
Finally, the methodology of the study has proven to be a constructive way to work
on professional development in ECEC, for example to work on common
understanding of values and values education, which the preschool teachers found
important and crucial when they worked with values education in their setting.
These issues need to be explored further in future studies.
The preschool teachers who participated in this action research study chose to
focus on the values of care, respect, and discipline. Existing Nordic studies show
that caring and democratic values are dominant in both the lifeworld and the system
perspective of Nordic preschools (Einarsdottir et al. 2015), but disciplinary values
are mainly found in the lifeworld perspective (Emilson and Johansson 2009;
Fugelsnes et al. 2013). The preschool teachers believed that these three values
would make the children socially stronger. Their focus on social skills is in
accordance with existing knowledge on values education, and increased social skills
have been found to be the main benefit of values education (Aðalbjarnardóttir 2007;
Toomey 2010).
The teachers seemed to realize that their prioritizing of values reflected their
personal values, which is in line with Brady’s (2011) and Gary’s (2010) discussions

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about deviations of values in each society because of the members’ different

personal values. The findings demonstrate the importance of gaining a common
understanding when reflecting on and working with values in early childhood
settings. The concept alone does not necessarily explain what is to be communicated
to the children, but needs to be well defined so everyone in the setting understands it
in similar way. This need for clarification may be especially when working with
values like discipline, which seems to be defined and understood differently among
cultures or even among individuals within the same culture. Furthermore, personal
background can affect one’s understanding, as Brady (2011) and Gary (2010) have
noted. Therefore, it might be some difference in how individuals understand the
same concept even though they have been working in collaboration to find a shared
understanding. This illustrates the complexity of interpretations of values and points
to values education as a multifaceted rather than building on cause-and-effect
relationship.
Discipline is not emphasized in the Icelandic national curriculum guidelines
(2011), but nevertheless the participating preschool teachers wanted to focus on the
value of discipline because they believed that it would make the children socially
stronger and that they would learn self-control. It is interesting to consider where the
preschool teachers’ focus on discipline comes from and why they chose discipline
as one of the values to focus on, and why they saw it as a challenge. A possible
explanation is that, because of external factors, they found themselves constrained
to communicate discipline to the children to meet requirements from society. If this
is the reason for their choice, it might be seen as an example of colonization of the
lifeworld, which Habermas warns against. The colonization Habermas speaks of is
when the system perspective takes over the lifeworld perspective such as when
discipline is forced into the preschools (Habermas 1981/1987; Kemmis 2011).
However, the preschool teachers’ unconventional definition of discipline, in this
study, might have been their way to be true to their own beliefs, by relating
discipline to social skills, and at the same time, responding to outside requirements.
Conflicts within the value of discipline were identified in the study. On the one
hand, the preschool teachers wanted to communicate positive discipline, in which
rules were flexible to individual’s needs. Hence, they found it important to aim at
what Habermas calls mutual understanding, by communicating discipline through
communicative action (Habermas 1981/1987). On the other hand, they found it
important to have some rigid rules where the children were required to do as they
were told or finish what they had started. In other words, they wanted to
communicate some rules through strategic actions (Habermas 1981/1987). In fact,
discipline was seen as the most complicated value of the three to work with,
possibly because it is often related to something negative in the minds of educators.
The participants, on the other hand, defined discipline as a social skill, and in a sense
the term self-discipline (Aðalbjarnardóttir 2007) might be more appropriate for their
understanding. They did not seem to understand the value of discipline as an
obligatory value as Emilson and Johansson (2009) found in their study. When the
preschool teachers found that they needed to make a stop to a behavior and direct
the children’s behavior, that is, to follow some rigid rules, they saw themselves

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helping the children to gain self-control rather than to obligate them to act in a
particular manner.
The emphasis that the preschool teachers put on children’s participation, even in
relation to discipline, is in line with Emilson and Johansson’s (2009) definition of
democratic values, which involves participation, influence, and negotiation. Even
though the preschool teachers at Hill Park preschool did not choose to focus on the
value of democracy, democratic values were evident in the data. The preschool
teachers, for example, emphasized children’s participation and influence in the
setting, and thereby found it important to aim at mutual understanding, using
communicative actions when communicating values to the children, rather than
aiming at achievement of goals by using strategic actions (Habermas 1981/1987).
The teachers also seemed to realize the importance of good listening and
questioning skills, which indicates their emphasis on democracy, and is consistent
with existing research (Mergler and Spooner-Lane 2012).
In addition to unveiling values prioritized in one Icelandic preschool, the aim of
the study was also to shed light on how the participating preschool teachers
understood their own roles in values education. Five themes were identified. Being a
good role model was seen as the most important theme, a belief that is in harmony
with findings from existing studies (Mergler and Spooner-Lane 2012). The
participants also found it important to use words that the children understood and
to discuss the values with the children, methods that indicate their emphasis on
communicative actions and mutual understanding (Habermas 1981/1987). Further,
the teachers wanted to guide the children in their actions rather than instructing
them in proper behavior, which has been a common method found in values
education research with primary school teachers (Mergler and Spooner-Lane 2012;
Thornberg 2008; Thornberg and Oğuz 2013). Finally, the preschool teachers found
themselves sometimes forced to direct the children to a certain behavior if the rules
could not be flexible.

Conclusion

Values can be communicated implicitly or explicitly. One aim of this action

research project was for the participating preschool teachers to become more
conscious of the values they communicate to children. The findings of this study
indicate that the participating preschool’s practice is oriented more toward mutual
understandings, that is, toward meaningful interactions with children, rather than
toward the achievement of academic goals. Also, it was observed that during the
action research period, there was more emphasis on a lifeworld perspective rather
than a systems’ perspective on education, in the participating setting.
The preschool teachers who participated in the study emphasized the importance
of children’s participation and development of social skills. For example, they
related discipline to social competences, a value that would make the children
socially stronger, even though discipline is often understood as a value that
obligates certain behaviors and is not related to participation. The emphasis of the
preschool teachers on social competence throughout the whole process appeared to

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reflect their professional practices and attitudes which, in turn, affected their beliefs
about values education and what values are important for young children and why.
The study has given insight into values education in one Icelandic preschool
setting. The findings can only serve as an indication of the beliefs and practices of
preschool teachers and an example of professional development in the area of values
education in ECEC settings. These findings make a valuable contribution to a
limited body of research available in the area of values education in an ECEC
settings particularly the relationship between teachers’ attitudes, teaching practices,
and beliefs about values education as well as the dichotomy between teaching
practices related to discipline and how children’s participation can be fully realized.
The role of preschool educators in values education is of special interest for future
research in the fields of values and values education.

Acknowledgments The study was part of a Nordic research project focusing on values education in
Nordic preschools (Values Education in Nordic Preschools (2013–2015). The Nordic project is funded by
NordForsk. In addition, this study was further funded by the City of Reykjavı́k and the University of
Iceland, School of education.

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